Nepali is a language in the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is the lingua-franca of Nepal and is also spoken in Bhutan, parts of India and parts of Myanmar (Burma). It is one of 23 official languages of India incorporated in 8th annex of the Indian Constitution. It has official language status in the formerly independent state of Sikkim and in West Bengal's Darjeeling district. Similarly, it is widely spoken in the state of Uttaranchal, as well as in the state of Assam. Nepali is the easternmost of the Pahari languages, a group of related languages spoken across the lower elevations of the Himalaya range, from eastern Nepal through the Indian states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. The influence of the Nepali language can also be seen in Bhutan and some parts of Burma. Nepali developed in proximity to a number of Tibeto-Burman languages, most notably Nepal Bhasa, and shows Tibeto-Burman influences. Nepali is closely related to the Hindi-Urdu complex and is mutually intelligible to a degree, yet is more conservative with more Sanskritic derivations and fewer Persian or English loan words. Nepali is commonly written in the Devanagari script, as are Hindi and Sanskrit. There is some record of using Takri script in the history of Nepali, especially in western Nepal, Utarakhand, and Himanchal. Bhujimol is an older script native to Nepal. Nepali developed a significant literature within a short period of hundred years in the nineteenth century, fueled by Adhyatma Ramayana; Sundarananda Bara (1833); Birsikka, an anonymous collection of folk-tales; and a Ramayana by Bhanubhakta. The contribution of trio-lauretes Poudyal, Devkota, and Sama took Nepali to the level of other world languages. The contribution of expatriate writers -- especially in Darjeeling and Varanasi -- is also notable. Historically, the language was first called Khaskura, then Gorkhali or Gurkhali before Nepali. Other names include Parbatiya ("mountain language", identified with the Parbatiya people of Nepal) and Lhotshammikha (the "southern language" of the Lhotshampa people of Bhutan).

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